My favourite ice-cream and gelato shops in Melbourne December 3rd 2014
I adore ice-cream and gelato and I am also a Libran.
"Why a Libran?" you may very well ask. As a child I found it difficult to make up my mind with menus. The more people would pressure me the harder the decision was. You see we did not go to restaurants as a child! So my menu was what was on offer in a shop.
Later as an adult the real menus had the same impact. Too many choices. We are spoiled with choice.
So I have made a conscious decision: that when I go out to restaurants I will always go for my favourite flavours of lemon, lime, passionate, raspberry. But if a Lemon Meringue or Rhubarb Pie was on the menu, then I would choose one of them. These flavours bring back so many memories of my mother's (Eunice) version. Otherwise, I would search the menu for ice-cream or gelato.
I have tried many ice-creams and gelatos in my 55 years. I would be remiss in not mentioning three of my favourite outlets:
Halados Jauja in Lygon St and Will's Batch in Bentleigh are my two favourites in Australia and in fact in all of my travels. I have only tried Messina at the Night Noodle Market and would put this in my top three.
At Halados Jauja, make sure you are brave and try the taste of the Durian flavour. It is renowned for its pungent odour but tastes delicious. I look forward to trying their Ice-cream Appreciation Masterclass one day. Of course I tried their lemon and raspberry and was won over. There are so many flavours to try and sadly they are a good half hour trip away from home.
While closer to home is our branch of Will's Batch which has very pleasant staff and pristine hygiene. They offer a frequent purchaser's card so make sure you have this in your wallet or purse as the litre, two litre and five litre tubs are sensational value.
Here they offer their famous Christmas Plum Pudding and it is very smooth and creamy and has a full bodied flavour without being over powering. Since 1997, I have cooked at least four large plum puddings using a recipe from the 1850s and Will's Batch ice cream certainly has the flavour of a traditional Christmas pudding. My 5 litres are on order to accompany my pudding for Christmas Day.
I highly recommend that you treat yourself regularly to their flavours. Liquorice with generous chunks within the ice cream is so luscious and decadent. We regularly buy this to share with our neighbours. My other favourite flavours in their range of ice creams and gelatos include their lemon, raspberry, raspberry ripple, passionfruit, lime and choc mint. I also adore their Butterscotch Crunch with lovely crunchy surprises. In fact their menu is so extensive I have not explored all of their flavours (as yet!)
I have only tried Messina once and look forward to trying them again when I am over Collingwood way. I shared their Happy Taste Bud Time and the Street Hawker with my partner. Both were delectable and full of interesting and complementary flavours. I also love the way they use cookies, syrups and macaroons in their tubs. Great value too. The queue at the Night Market was very long and we were surprised at how they moved the line so quickly. The staff had a military-precision in constructing their meticulous works of art.
Each of these three ice-creameries are my favourites and are reasonable priced for high quality product.
Coming a close fourth is the Ice Creamery near the Princess Theatre in Spring St. It is in the same building as the Spring St Grocer. On their website you have to explore to find the colour that matches their ice-cream section. They also have the best Cheese Cellar with an exceptional knowledgeable cheese monger. Do ask to try Napoleon's favourite cheese! Epoisse. This is to die for. Yes it is expensive but it is worth it. The Cheese Cellar is down the spiral staircase in the centre of the shop.
Happy tasting.
